the red parts are those sending off the most body heat into the air. the nose is functions as a body heat control. as if this was having to tow a heavy burden. perhaps one that is toting jingling bells. it is not a myth. also, the arrow is pointing at the nose. but we are going to stay focused on the nose end of things. dutch scientists. absolutely the best new thing in the world today. red-nosed reindeer, absolutely the best new thing in the world today. "first look" is up next. right now on "first look," it looks like the mayans were wrong. the world is still here in all its glory and chaos. mother nature's providing plenty

of it as a dangerous and deadly winter storm moves across the country. speaker john boehner fails to rally republicans. congress goes on vacation and the fiscal cliff looms even larger. plus the nra plans a press conference exactly one week after the newtown massacre. good morning. i'm maraschiacampo. the dangerous snow and ice has claimed over half a dozen lives. the imarges from a 25-vehicle pile-up in des moines, iowa. the storm is dumping as much as a foot of snow in its path and driving rain and wind gusts in the 50-mile-per-hour range in others. air travelers across the country are facing major cancellations from san diego to new york with the worst cancellations coming out of chicago. our nbc meteorologist bill karins is tracking the storm for us. what's the latest? >> today was a good day to take off from work if you possibly could. in a lot of areas from the great

lakes to the west coast, the wind is howling. the wind is the biggest threat out there. it's going to be this morning in mostly the big cities along i-95. right now winds 39 in philadelphia. 36 in scranton. you have to get in the 50-mile-per-hour range to get damaging winds. that will occur as the sun is coming up this morning around new york city, philadelphia, all of new jersey and then southern new england this afternoon. it's not pretty around chicago with winds at 40 and indianapolis at 40 and areas of snow out here. so it's a very windy day out there. not good for flying. a lot of airline delays. as far as the rain goes, the rain is in green, remember. heavy rain kicking up from philadelphia to new york city through the hudson valley, through scranton and binghamton, new york. that will be over the top of boston this afternoon. the back side of the storm has a lot of snow with it. areas in white. snowing hard in northern indiana through michigan. that snow will rotate through cleveland throughout the morning.

very dangerous roads in cleveland as the colder air moves in. everything will be freezing. again, we're locked into the rain for the whole morning commute from philadelphia to new york city. it doesn't look like it will clear out until about noon today. so that's the bottom line for the new york city area down to philadelphia, d.c., any time after noon today your travel will be fine. breezy and windy, but not like this morning. >> thanks so much, bill. a shocker on capitol hill last night as house speaker john boehner's plan b backfired. the deadline for the fiscal cliff is approaching faster than santa's sleigh. and speaker boehner's power may be severely damaged as official gop members balk at his pleas. >> reporter: the vote on boehner's plan b was canceled abruptly. >> the house will stand in recess subject to the call of the chair. >> a big embarrassment for the speaker who had hoped to force democrats to follow his lead. >> the senate democrats and white house refused to act. they'll be responsible for the

largest tax hike in u.s. history. >> reporter: but boehner's tax plan to raise rates on increase over $1 million upset tea party republicans. >> this debate should be about spending, not taxes. >> reporter: in trouble, boehner pulled republicans into a meeting, tried to get the votes he needed but failed. >> it's unbelievable. this is horrible. i mean, i am -- i'm angry. i'm sad for my friend the speaker and i'm sad for the country. >> reporter: plan b looks dead. >> will there be a vote tomorrow? >> no. >> reporter: democrats gloated at boehner's failure. >> it was a bad plan but he couldn't even sell his bad plan to their extreme members of his own caucus. >> reporter: earlier this week a boehner as we e boehner/obama compromise looked close to getting done. >> they are so close. what is the speaker waiting for? >> reporter: now boehner has learned his house republicans might reject any tax hikes. i'm steve handelsman, nbc news,

capitol hill. the off-camera private meeting of the republicans last night produced some fireworks as speaker boehner pleaded with his gop colleagues. luke russert had some of the details of what happened. >> john boehner and a very somber manner went before his conference and said, i don't have the votes. he made a plea sort of saying we really need this. we need this to keep our negotiating power with president oba obama. folks inside the meeting just shook their heads. at one point, representative mike kelley from pennsylvania got up, stood in front of the entire house gop conference and started screaming saying they needed to rally around the speaker. that he needed to stay unified. this was their moment and, folks shook their head and acknowledged they didn't have the votes at which time john boehner said, well, hopefully see you after christmas. >> reporter: the governor of connecticut is calling for a moment of silence this morning to mark one week since last week's mass shooting in newtown. president obama and many states plan to observe that moment of silence today.

funerals for six more of the 26 victims were held yesterday. mourners continue to pour into the small connecticut town to pay tribute and remember the lives that were lost. nbc news will provide live coverage of today's moment of silence with a special report at 9:30 eastern. today, the national rifle association will hold a news conference later this morning addressing the massacre. the nra has been largely silent since the shooting. yesterday a private funeral was held in new hampshire for nancy lanza, the woman who was murdered by her son adam before he drove to sandy hook elementary school and killed 20 children and himself. now here's your first look at this morning's dish of scrambled politics. nbc news has confirmed that former south carolina governor mark sanford is planning to run for the house seat that congressman tim scott will be vacating when he becomes the state's new senator in january. sanford's ex-wife jenny is considering a run of her own against her former husband and she plans to make a decision after consulting with her family

over the holidays. that could get interesting. conservative republican congressman dan burton of indiana said if a fiscal cliff deal is not reached, the gop would be forced to accept higher tax rates for income above $250,000. support for new gun control legislation may be increasing but a new report says 51% of the 2013 house members have taken money from the national rifle association. and so have 42% of senators. hints about hillary clinton and a possible 2016 run for the white house. she has plans to visit ireland soon along with key irish supporters who have raised money for her campaigns in the past. scott brown is thought to be a strong republican candidate to replace john kerry if he leaves the senate to replace hillary clinton as secretary of state. the new poll showed him leading against potential democratic candidates. reportedly edward kennedy jr. is seriously considering a run for the seat. if kennedy enters the race he may become a favorite who could beat scott brown. $9 million down the tubes.

mitt romney was the first non-incumbent president who got federal government money under a law passed by congress in 2010 for preparations for a transition to the white house. that $9 million has been spent on a transition that will never happen. and that's your morning dish of scrambled politics. now it's time for a holiday tradition around here. and only a matter of days, santa claus will be climbing into a sleigh and traveling all around the world courtesy of eight tiny reindeer. nbc's bob redell is in north pole, alaska, where they are getting set for a big sendoff. bob, good morning. >> reporter: good morning to you. i got to tell you, those things are a little bit different this year. normally santa's sleigh here in front of his house would already be partially filled with toys. clearly, that is not the case. part of the issue is, the temperature. it is minus -- i'm not kidding here. minus 48 degrees. so this is slowing him and his

elves down a bit. but he has reassured us. we've been inside. he's reassured us that in spite of these extreme temperatures they will be ready in time for monday night bhop is going to be pulling that sleigh right here monday night? of course i'm talking about those reindeer. we were able to check in with them earlier. i am a little concerned about comet. how is he supposed to fly when you can see, he can barely work. cupid is in the back. that's donner. that's dancer. i think that's blitzen in the foreground. vixen. they are always eating. they never get their faces out of the bowl there. that was prancer, i believe, leaving to the right and dasher not living up to his name. nearly the slow one of the bunch in spite of the fact that he's got that dashing name. back out here live where we have been speak with santa. we've also been talking with his elves and we've got gary is right there. gary, are we good for christmas eve? is that a thumbs up? that is a thumbs up. so there you have it.

merry christmas from north pole, alaska. in spite of the ridiculously cold temps, everything is going to be ready in time for monday night. >> thank you bob. if gary says it's so, gary the elf, that's all the assurance that we need. a gallon of milk could hit $8 in january. we'll have the details on that next. plus, caught on camera. when christmas gifts are ripped off by dueling delivery guys. plus, richard engel describes being held captive and not knowing if he'd live or die. his compelling story next on "first look." ♪ if it wasn't for you

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some stories making news this morning. vice president joe biden says the obama administration will push to tighten gun control laws in the wake of the connecticut school shootings. biden said, quote, even if we can only save one life, we have to take action. a congressional hearing, two state department officials answered questions about poor security during the september 11th attack on the u.s. consulate in benghazi, libya that killed more americans, including an ambassador. republican and democratic

lawmakers clashed over whether a lack of funding or lack of leadership was the real problem. last night on "rock center with brian williams," richard engel recounted the agonizing moments of being held capitalive in syria, including the moments he felt he'd never leave the country alive. >> you're blindfolded. you don't know what's going on. they take you outside forcefully. they line you up against a wall. you hear weapons loading and unloading. you hear plastic wrap being on a tarp set out in front of you. you think this is it. then they leave you there for 30 minutes. and just let the moment play out. and that was happening every day. >> richard and his team were not harmed and left syria on tuesday. he'll share more of his story on the "today" show. over on wall street, the dow gained 59 points yesterday. the s&p up seven and the nasdaq added six. the nikkei fell 99 while the

hang seng dropped 153. today could be a tense day for markets. stock futures fell sharply thursday evening after house speaker john boehner said he failed to mount support for his plan b bill. intercontinental xarchlg is buying the new york stock exchange for $8.2 billion sent both companies soaring yesterday. research in motion tumbled more than 10% after reporting its first ever decline in subscribers. peter madoff, the brother of jailed ponzi skeeper bernie madoff, will serve ten years in prison. peter madoff still says he's innocent. facebook is testing a new way to make some money. charging users $1 to send an internal e-mail message to someone who is not on their friend list. forget the fiscal crisis. come january 1st there's a possibility that milk prices could rise to as much as $6 to $8 per gallon. that's if congress fails to pass a new farm bill. in the wake of superstorm sandy which led to the conselation of this year's new

york marathon. runners from around the world are being offered a full refund. those in the know say the average markdown is around 43% right now. that's compared to 33% on black friday. but getting a deal doesn't always guarantee delivery. this home surveillance video shows a u.p.s. driver delivering a package to one doorstep, and then coming back to swipe a fedex delivered package that contained an ipad mini. they tracked down the seasonal driver and fired him. the ipad was returned and no charges made. what if there were no u.p.s., no fedex and no magic. how much help with santa need? according to experts from those companies from sleigh loaders to flight safety to forecasters, old saint nick would need about 12 million helpers. it's a good thing he has all those elves. former three-time olympian admits to working as a $600 an hour escort. plus, breaking news on the two escaped chicago bank robbers. a 4'5'high school varsity

basketball player that you've got to see to believe. you're watching "first look."

i'd like to say happy holidays to my mom and dad and daughter trinity and son raden back home. >> i'm captain natasha best stationed at bagram airfield. i want to send out a shout-out to my wonderful supportive husband gregory and beautiful daughter chloe. i'll be home for christmas,

honey. >> here's your first look at other news going on around america. we begin with breaking news on a bank robbing duo's chicago prison break. one of them was caught thursday night. connolly is still being hunted. a dramatic rescue saved three people from burning inside a fiery wreck. two florida officers and a good samaritan sprung into action after a collision caused a car to burst into flames. the shattered the windows and pulled each of the occupants safely from the vehicle. to alabama where downed trees destroyed homes and scattered debris after an ef-1 tornado touched down in mobile. it left devastating damage at businesses like this mercedes dealership where several cars were destroyed. a former tennessee marine is risking criminal charges to protect his children from

violence. the honorably discharged serviceman is wearing his uniform while standing guard. for now he is ignoring the order and continues to wear his military uniform. and finally, to norfolk, virginia, where thousands are home for the holidays. friends and family were on hand to celebrate. the service members will have at least a couple of months of good old home cooking before being shipped out again. in sports, we start with college football in the poinsettia bowl. brigham young's defense scored two touchdowns on turnovers and beat san diego state 23-6. in the nba, lebron james scored 24 points against dallas and dwyane wade added 19 more as the heat beat the dallas mavericks, 110-95. the national hockey league announced the cancellation of games through january 14th, 2013. that's over 50% of the nhl season down the tubes over a labor dispute. three-time olympian susie favor hamilton has admitted to

working as an escort in las vegas. she told the smoking gun website that in addition to being a mother and real estate agent, she also earned $600 an hour in las vegas, l.a., chicago and other cities. he says the prostitution was, quote, a huge mistake and acknowledges that depression was one of the reasons for doing it. flashback to last january. green bay packer fans earn extra bucks by clearing lambeau field. that same scene is expected to play out today as fans answer the call to clear half a foot of snow and get paid $10 an hour. not bad. and in florida, a fifth grader is now starting for the local high school varsity basketball team. julian newman is 4'5" but he has great ball handling skills and one other advantage. his father coaches the team. that always helps. now for another look at the weather, here's nbc meteorologist bill karins with the weather channel forecast. how is it looking out there? >> as bad as it is for travel, i'm sure there's a lot of kids that are excited, probably

getting an early start to their christmas break. i'm sure a lot of schools this morning either delayed or canceled. northern indiana through ohio and even now kentucky is getting pretty good snow. if you are in eastern kentucky heading into the mountainous areas. west virginia starting to pick up snow, too. that will continue all day long today. there's some snowy areas. even now cleveland. in detroit northwards toward saginaw, snow showers for you. how much snow are we talking about? this is more or less snow showers, squall line. an inch or two here. the best chances for enough snow to be shoveling it is all of west virginia, and then throughout the rest of today into tonight and into tomorrow, that area there, a little bit of lake enhancement south of buffalo. the high country. should pick up about 6 to 12 inches of snow. that's the best of it and the biggest of it. the middle of the country is cold and chilly after the blizzard conditions. as we go throughout tomorrow and into sunday, the storm will be exiting and gone and travel will be greatly improved across the country. the worst is right now. >> at least it's moving quickly.

just ahead, could justin bieber be banned in the philippines? find out what he did. and it's a big budget battle at the hollywood weekend box office. your entertainment headlines are straight ahead. you're watching "first look" on msnbc. in that time there've been some good days. and some difficult ones. but, through it all, we've persevered, supporting some of the biggest ideas in modern history. so why should our anniversary matter to you? because for 200 years, we've been helping ideas move from ambition to achievement. and the next great idea could be yours. ♪ or treat gas with these after you get it. now that's like sunblock before or sun burn cream later. oh, somebody out there's saying, now i get it! take beano before and there'll be no gas.

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this week? taylor swift took her new boyfriend to a tattoo parlor in l.a. he got this giant ship on his arm. pretty -- look. there's his tattoo there. yeah. he's got some guns, too. but actually she got a tattoo as well. we have a close-up of the one she got. isn't that nice? very nice. everyone gets a tattoo.

well, you'll have plenty to choose from at the box office this holiday weekend. anyone looking for an action flick will get their feel with "jack reacher" and "jiangle unchained." "zero dark thirty" also comes out. also this is 40 and a re-release of monsters inc. if you are looking for a musical, "le mis" opens christmas day and has a ton of good buzz around it. "30 rock" wrapped production on its final season and cast member tweeted out this picture. >> that is the staff. >> and speaking of twitter, rihanna sent out a picture of this $160,000 porch she received from her record label complete with a giant bow strapped to the hood. what are you getting for christmas? >> she's been a good investment? >> i would say so. justin bieber can now say he's offended an entire country. he sent out this photo mocking

manny pacquiao's boxing defeat calling the filipino government to impose a ban of the biebs. no word on a pacquiao/bieber bought. if they ban bieber, they'll have to ban a lot of people. those pictures have been going around the internet for a while. there are a lot of people who have been making fun of pacqu o pacquiao. he's a boxer. it goes with the territory. but who am i to say? i'm mara schiavocampo." stay tuned. "way too early" starts right now. in the fifth century, the mayans correctly